Even though I studied photography in school and at college, it wasn't until I took a job as a flight attendant that I really started using it. On average, I'd be in two different countries every week, and would use our 1 or 2 day layovers to explore and document. At first I was more into street photography, which then turned into portraiture, which then turned into a desire to turn this photography stuff into a career.

In my mind, the most sensible career prospect was fashion, so I started to build a portfolio. I'd do this by contacting amateur models during layovers or even modelling agencies and asking to shoot their "fresh faces". These were both men and women. It did work, and soon I was able to use this portfolio to secure jobs in fashion when back home in London, though usually they were hardly glamorous assisting gigs.

Sometimes, however, I'd just contact a guy on an app for a non-portfolio shoot. For example, one time during a layover in Korea, even though I did have a shoot booked with a 'proper' model the following day, I was itching to shoot as soon as the plane landed. So I turned on Grindr and found this guy Min-Hyeok who lived near our crew hotel. We met, we chatted, and I photographed him. The pics we took wouldn't work for a fashion portfolio - they were too intimate, too imperfect, and he was too much 'not like a model'. But I enjoyed these pics more than the others. I loved the honesty and earnestness of them. Here, in Incheon with Min-Hyeok, the seeds of Elska were sown. Elska was born in Korea.

No spoilers, but we might be going to Korea to make a full Elska issue soon. Maybe we'll even find Min-Hyeok.